The Psychology Book

97

another part of the mental structure,
the ego, recognizes the Reality
Principle, which says we can’t have
everything we desire, but must
take account of the world we live
in. The ego negotiates with the id,
trying to find reasonable ways to
help it get what it wants, without
resulting in damage or other
terrible consequences. The ego
itself is controlled by the
superego—the internalized voice
of parents and society’s moral
codes. The superego is a judging
force, and the source of our
conscience, guilt, and shame.
In fact, Freud proposes, the
unconscious holds a vast amount
of conflicting forces. In addition
to the drives of the life and
death forces, it encompasses the
intensity of repressed memories
and emotions, as well as the
contradictions inherent in our
views of conscious reality alongside
our repressed reality. According
to Freud, the conflict that arises
from these contrasting forces is
the psychological conflict that
underlies human suffering. Is it any

wonder that humans exist in states

of anxiety, depression, neurosis,

and other forms of discontent?

Psychoanalytical treatment

Since the unconscious remains

inaccessible, the only way the

conflicts can be recognized is

through the symptoms that are

present in the conscious. Emotional

suffering, Freud claims, is the result

of unconscious conflict. We cannot

continually fight against ourselves,

against the uprising of repressed

material, and against the force of

death, without emotional turmoil.

Freud’s unique approach to the

treatment of psychological ailments

involved working with the conflicts

that existed in the unconscious.

He sought to free the patient

from repressed memories and so

alleviate their mental pain. His

approach to treatment is called

psychoanalytic psychotherapy, or

psychoanalysis. This process is

not easy or quick. Psychoanalysis

is only performed by a therapist

trained in Freud’s specific

approach, and it is his therapy

PSYCHOTHERAPY

that encourages a patient to lie on

a couch and talk. From Freud’s first

treatments, psychoanalysis has

been practiced in sessions that

can sometimes last for hours, take

place several times per week, and

continue for many years.

While unconscious thoughts

cannot be retrieved through normal

introspection, the unconscious can

communicate with the conscious in

some ways. It quietly communicates

via our preferences, the frames of

reference in which we tend to

understand things, and the symbols

that we are drawn to or create.

During analysis, the analyst

acts as a mediator, trying to allow

unspoken thoughts or unbearable

feelings to come to light. Messages

arising from a conflict between the

conscious and the unconscious are

likely to be disguised, or encoded,

and it is the psychoanalyst’s job to

interpret the messages using the

tools of psychoanalysis. ❯❯

Freud’s patients would recline on

this couch in his treatment room while

they talked. Freud would sit out of sight

while he listened for clues to the source

of the patient’s internal conflicts.

A man should not

strive to eliminate his

complexes, but to get into

accord with them; they are

legitimately what directs his

conduct in the world.

Sigmund Freud